Page 13 of The Tempo of Truth
Lowe tilted his head and took a minute to think about the question.My heart somersaulted, watching the big and small pieces of my heart click together.
“If it pops or someone takes it from me, she’ll buy me another one.If I lose it because I’m not careful, I’ll have to do chores or help my auntie out to earn a new one.Mommy says we have to take care of the things that we like, even if they’re easy to replace.”
“Your mom is pretty smart,” Ky muttered the compliment under his breath, but I still heard it.
Lowe nodded in a manner that was too serious for a five-year-old.“Mommy’s the best.My Uncle Win says it’s my job to protect her.He says there are a lot of people who aren’t very nice to her, so we have to keep an eye on people who want to get close to her.I won’t let them hurt her.”
It was a child repeating serious words told to him by a stoic adult.It should’ve been a cute, playful moment.But there was an underlying warning in the childish words.My son might seem easy to win over, but he was on guard against everyone, including his father.
Ky looked a bit taken aback but eventually reached out and ruffled the boy’s dark hair.“Your Uncle Win is a smart guy.Good for you for knowing that you need to listen to him and keep your mom safe.”Ky easily changed the heavy subject.“How about you hand me that screwdriver?”
I made sure they heard me coming to break the somewhat awkward atmosphere.I offered Ky a drink, but he declined.I wasn’t sure if Lowe was trying to emulate the new adult in his life or if he really wasn’t thirsty, but he also declined, even though it was his favorite fruit punch.I didn’t question the choice so as not to embarrass him and instead just set everything down within easy reach and found an unobtrusive place to sit and watch the two of them build the tiny goalie nets, one for each side of the terrace.
Ky turned his hat around so it was backward on his head and focused on the task seriously.He kept up a steady stream of conversation with the little boy at his side while I did my best not to melt and fall in love with him all over again.I had to keep a tight hold on my rampaging heart so I didn’t scare my kid’s father away right after he found him.
Lost in thought, I jumped when Lowe threw himself into my lap and handed me a cell phone with a black screen.His chocolatey brown eyes blinked up at me as he asked, “That guy wants to know if you can charge his phone.He said it’s dead.”
I bopped his scrunched nose and looked at the charging port before agreeing to take it.“That guyhas a name.You should call him Ky.”
“Okay.”He pointed to the snacks on the table.“Can I have that?”
I lifted my eyebrows and asked, “Can I have that…?”I trailed off and watched as he pouted.
“Mommy, can I have that, please?”He exaggerated the last word so much that it made both me and Ky laugh.I handed over the cheese and crackers and watched him run back to Ky’s side with his treat.
Seeing that Ky had no trouble keeping our little boy occupied, I stepped into my room, which was across from the entrance to the roof, and found the proper plug to charge Ky’s phone.I noticed it was an older model, and the screen was cracked.It’d definitely seen better days, kind of like its owner.
I set it down and forgot all about it as the boys finished building the goals and proceeded to kick the soccer ball around until it was time to eat dinner.Ky hung out a lot longer than I expected, but there was no convincing him to stay and eat a meal.When he left, he seemed anxious and a bit fidgety.Gone was the cool guy who had no problem entertaining his son all afternoon.He was in such a rush that I didn’t get the chance to ask when he planned to come by again or how he felt about getting to know Lowe better.It was like a switch flipped, and the version of Kyser Kent I was most familiar with suddenly made his grand appearance.
Fortunately, Lowe didn’t pick up on the sudden strangeness.Just like I predicted, he crashed out as soon as Ky left.I planned on letting him sleep for only an hour or so because he still needed to eat dinner, and I didn’t want his schedule to get screwed up.
As he slept, I realized that I needed to do better about integrating Ky into Lowe’s life rather than letting him be a father only when it was convenient for him.I was too eager for the two of them to bond and develop a relationship, so I was making things too easy for Ky.
He’d never appreciate how great or how challenging parenthood could be if I allowed him to sleepwalk through it while I held his hand the whole way.
Lowe was fussy all through dinner and bathtime.I put him to bed after reading one of his favorite books and assured him he could bring his cousins over the following day to play with his new setup.He fought falling asleep as long as he was able.I kissed him on the head and finally got ready to unwind from the accumulated tension that had gathered throughout the day.
It wasn’t until I was in my room, ready to climb into bed and go over a few things for work, that I realized Ky’s phone was still on the charger.The screen lit up with a bunch of messages, and it vibrated like it was alive because of repeated calls.
I frowned, realizing I had no way to get hold of him to return it.
I tapped the screen with my finger, not surprised I’d received a message from a number I didn’t recognize asking if I had Ky’s phone.I thought about ignoring it just to be petty because I could only imagine which big-breasted ingénue he asked to reach out to me.Reason prevailed, and I messaged back that his phone was with me, and I would have someone drop it off for him tomorrow morning.
To my surprise, the messenger asked me if it was at all possible to take the phone to the gym where Ky worked that evening.The tone of the message was urgent and didn’t sound like Ky at all.
Curious, and glad to have a legitimate reason to pry into Ky’s private business, I agreed to bring the device to the address provided.
It felt a little bit like I was embarking on a secret mission.Similar to how I used to feel when I was lurking around on the fringes of Ky’s life, when our relationship was strictly look but don’t touch, and all I wanted was to catch a glimpse of him.I was excited to have a reason to peek into his private life, even if he wasn’t the one who opened the door.
Ky
“He’s gotta work on grappling and getting better at groundwork.Keep that kid down until he can escape.”Lev’s frustrated voice made “the kid,” who was actually a grown man several years older and four inches taller than me, squirm even more in the headlock I had him in.He was one of Lev’s recent MMA hopefuls.I was pretty sure the guy was juiced up on steroids because his temper was nasty, and he didn’t seem to know exactly what to do with the majority of his bulk.He was as strong as an ox and about as coordinated as one.If he didn’t learn some flexibility and how to fight with his head as well as his hands, he was never going to make it into a professional cage match or a title fight.What he lacked made no difference to Lev.The Russian had no problem throwing a rabid dog into the underground circuit to play punching bag and shift the odds for the bookies and gamblers if they couldn’t cut it on the big stage.
The guy attempted to use his legs and hips, pushing himself off the mat and attempting to flip our positions so that I was the one fighting for leverage.I flexed the muscles in my thighs and squeezed his neck even tighter.It felt a bit like I was attempting to crush a ripe watermelon with my legs.
“Oh.Hello there.Not often we see a pretty woman around these parts.”Lev’s voice, which was dripping with fake charm, broke my concentration.I tilted my head back and froze when I caught sight of Winnie making her way across the gym.The stone-faced Hispanic guy who was never very far from her side was scanning every inch of the place as if they’d just entered an active warzone.I could tell her head of security didn’t like me.The way he looked at me would’ve made another man cower in fear or shame.Too bad for him; I had little of either left after my life imploded all those years ago.It would take more than a scowl and silent warnings to intimidate me, especially on my own turf.
Winnie, on the other hand, she always scared the shit out of me and constantly made me forget myself.As she approached where Lev was standing with an extended hand to shake, I lost control of the guy I was grappling with and ended up taking an elbow to the solar plexus and getting smacked in the nose with the back of his head.The blow made me see stars for a second.It was a good thing that keeping my guard up was second nature; otherwise, I would’ve ended up in a headlock, with two hundred pounds of pure muscle fiending for revenge on my back.
